Once Again, Machine Beats Human Champion at Chess

Tyrael · #1 11th-December-2006

Quote:

Once Again, Machine Beats Human Champion at Chess

By DYLAN LOEB McCLAIN

Published: December 5, 2006

In the continuing quest to see if humans can outpace their electronic creations, the humans have lost another, perhaps decisive, round.

A six-game chess match between Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, the world champion, and Deep Fritz, a souped-up version of commercially available chess software made by Chessbase, ended today in victory for the computer, which won the final game and clinched the match, 4 games to 2.

Mr. Kramnik fell behind in the match when he lost Game 2 by walking into a checkmate in one move with hardly any pieces remaining on the board, a mistake that ranks as one of the biggest in championship-level chess history. Needing a win today to tie the match, Mr. Kramnik took some chances, eventually lost a pawn, and was then outmaneuvered by the computer.

The match, which began Nov. 25, was played in the National Art Gallery in Bonn, Germany, and was sponsored by the RAG Group, a German industrial conglomerate based in Essen. According to RAG, Mr. Kramnik would have been paid $1 million if he had won; reports in the chess press said that he would receive half that amount as an appearance fee if he lost.

The match was the second that a world chess champion has lost to a computer. In 1997, Garry Kasparov lost a six-game match to Deep Blue, a dedicated chess computer created by I.B.M.

Since then, Mr. Kasparov drew a match in 2003 against Deep Junior, a program developed in Israel, and Mr. Kramnik drew a match in 2002 against an earlier version of Deep Fritz.

TodayÂ’s outcome may end the interest in future chess matches between human champions and computers, according to Monty Newborn, a professor of computer science at McGill University in Montreal. Professor Newborn, who helped organize the match between Mr. Kasparov and Deep Blue, said of future matches: Â“I donÂ’t know what one could get out of it at this point. The science is done.Â”

Mr. Newborn said that the development of chess computers had been useful.

Â“If you look back 50 years, that was one thing we thought they couldnÂ’t do,Â” he said. Â“It is one little step, thatÂ’s all, in the most exciting problem of what canÂ’t computers do that we can do.Â”

Speculating about where research might go next, Mr. Newborn said, Â“If you are interested in programming computers so that they compete in games, the two interesting ones are poker and go. That is where the action is.Â”

Click here for the article.

Tyrael · #2 11th-December-2006

Quote:

Once Again, Machine Beats Human Champion at Chess

By DYLAN LOEB McCLAIN

Published: December 5, 2006

In the continuing quest to see if humans can outpace their electronic creations, the humans have lost another, perhaps decisive, round.

A six-game chess match between Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, the world champion, and Deep Fritz, a souped-up version of commercially available chess software made by Chessbase, ended today in victory for the computer, which won the final game and clinched the match, 4 games to 2.

Mr. Kramnik fell behind in the match when he lost Game 2 by walking into a checkmate in one move with hardly any pieces remaining on the board, a mistake that ranks as one of the biggest in championship-level chess history. Needing a win today to tie the match, Mr. Kramnik took some chances, eventually lost a pawn, and was then outmaneuvered by the computer.

The match, which began Nov. 25, was played in the National Art Gallery in Bonn, Germany, and was sponsored by the RAG Group, a German industrial conglomerate based in Essen. According to RAG, Mr. Kramnik would have been paid $1 million if he had won; reports in the chess press said that he would receive half that amount as an appearance fee if he lost.

The match was the second that a world chess champion has lost to a computer. In 1997, Garry Kasparov lost a six-game match to Deep Blue, a dedicated chess computer created by I.B.M.

Since then, Mr. Kasparov drew a match in 2003 against Deep Junior, a program developed in Israel, and Mr. Kramnik drew a match in 2002 against an earlier version of Deep Fritz.

TodayÂ’s outcome may end the interest in future chess matches between human champions and computers, according to Monty Newborn, a professor of computer science at McGill University in Montreal. Professor Newborn, who helped organize the match between Mr. Kasparov and Deep Blue, said of future matches: Â“I donÂ’t know what one could get out of it at this point. The science is done.Â”

Mr. Newborn said that the development of chess computers had been useful.

Â“If you look back 50 years, that was one thing we thought they couldnÂ’t do,Â” he said. Â“It is one little step, thatÂ’s all, in the most exciting problem of what canÂ’t computers do that we can do.Â”

Speculating about where research might go next, Mr. Newborn said, Â“If you are interested in programming computers so that they compete in games, the two interesting ones are poker and go. That is where the action is.Â”

Click here for the article.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Chess genius Bobby Fischer dies in Iceland	Tyrael	Great Men & Their Historical Accomplishments	2	18th-January-2008 08:50 PM
Rally champion Colin McRae dies with son in helicopter crash	Tyrael	Great Men & Their Historical Accomplishments	0	17th-September-2007 10:39 PM
Kovalainen steps into the shoes of a champion - Reuters.uk	RSS	Sports	0	6th-September-2006 05:41 PM
3D chess	Marx	The Arcade	2	27th-August-2006 06:43 PM

Once Again, Machine Beats Human Champion at Chess

Once Again, Machine Beats Human Champion at Chess

Similar Threads